Computer systems have increasingly become an integral part of the business world and the activities of individual consumers. For example, computer systems are used to complete transactions, store data, provide information, etc. An operating system is the software component of a computer system that manages and coordinates processes executed by the system. In addition, the operating system manages and coordinates the various resources of the computer system. The operating system often is used to access sensitive data stored within the computer system.
Sensitive data may include financial data, such as credit card numbers, bank account numbers, and various other types of financial data. Sensitive data may also include personal information such as social security numbers, passwords, birthdays, and various other types of personal information. Computer systems may also contain other types of sensitive data, such as confidential intellectual property. Unauthorized access to confidential data may result in financial loss and other undesirable consequences.
If a computer system is stolen, the unauthorized user (i.e., the thief) may potentially gain access to the sensitive data stored within the computer system and the physical hardware (i.e., the computer system itself). Security programs may be installed on the computer system to communicate with an external server in the event that an unauthorized user gains access to the computer system. However, traditional security programs running on the operating system of the computer system may be easily located, circumvented, and disabled by the unauthorized user. What is needed, therefore, is a more robust mechanism to remediate against data and hardware theft.